Woodkid: Yoann Lemoine’s Epic Alter Ego

Woodkid’s buzz has already been ringing in our ears for the past few months and some might even pride themselves in discovering the pine scented singer songwriter in April 2011 as he started emerging from his graphic-artist and video director cocoon to embrace a dazzling pallet of musical roles with the much acclaimed Iron EP. Like a French musical Gepetto, Yoann Lemoine breathed life into his Anglophone alter ego Woodkid; who seems to be superseding his maker as an accomplished musical creation displaying all at once visual, compositional and vocal talents.

To better grasp the being that is Woodkid, turn to Flaubert’s definition of an author: “An author in his book must be like God in the universe, present everywhere and visible nowhere” – and simply read “track” instead of “book”. In fact, for the first few months of his musical activity, Woodkid was completely anonymous, somewhat a Homer of music, partaking in that world of pseudonym named DJs and producers. After the graphic blast of the track “Iron” that unrolls like a cross between a mythical tale and a luxury perfume add featuring the elf-like Agyness Deyn, a farandole of more acoustic tracks followed. “Brooklyn”, “Baltimore’s Fireflies” and “Wasteland” highlight Woodkid’s slightly croaking, slightly high pitched voice bolstered by a Yann Tiersen sounding piano. However Yoann’s video-maker’s touch took over Woodkid’s career by creating a series of musical video weaving a narrative thread – harking back to the work of his compatriots, Daft Punk – and working up a substantial internet hype for the much awaited “Run Boy Run” video that aired in may 2012. True to the first video of the series, these second visuals are something of a meeting between Richard Avedon and Where the Wild Things Are on a symphonic and epic musical backdrop.

This track is the first single to the much-awaited LP The Golden Age, which should be released before the end of 2012, and would be a coming-of-age album of sorts depicting the transformation of the Boy into a man. As we await this multi-media project, DJs seem to be drawn to the Frenchmen’s work like moths to a flame cranking out more remixes than there are original tracks – if you’re feeling like waging a musical war take a look at the infamous Gucci Vump remix of Iron, if you’re more lighthearted turn to the Ostend one or witness Woodkid’s own turntable talents with Portugal. The Man’s “So American” remix.